Tuesday, August 7, 2012

Maryam and her CLD

So, Chronic Lung Disease sucks. Fortunately I've been able to manage it through education and experience. I ask the right questions and listen to advice from her doctors and usually can get her back to "normal" within a few days.
The thing about CLD is it causes simple things like bronchitis to make it nearly impossible for her to breathe. If you or I or even Jax get bronchitis we'll be down for a day or two and be back to normal within 3 or 4 days. When Maryam gets sick she gets SICK.
Jax started to get sick Wednesday night, by Saturday morning he was fine! Maryam started to get sick Friday night and by Monday couldn't go more than 3 hours without a breathing treatment.
So Sunday I started doubling her antibiotics and QVAR. By Monday I started her on steroids. Her steroids are pills and she just cannot swallow pills yet. I tried smashing them up and desolving them in water but she still gagged, retched, turned purple and choked. It's not pretty.
Monday night she had a breathing treatment at 10pm and another one at midnight. She was awake at 5am today needing another. I gave her two breathing treatments before 6:30am today!
So at 7am I woke up Brett and told him to take her to her doc to get her steroid in liquid form. The doc said I did everything right. Doubling her antibiotic and QVAR and starting the steroid are exactly what he would have prescribed. He also confirmed that Albuterol around the clock was a must. He wrote the prescription for liquid steroids, refilled the Albuterol script and sent them on the way.
Today was tough. Albuterol every 3 to 4 hours and not seeming to help is disheartening. Poor punkin is sad. She's tired because she can't sleep. She's moody from the steroids. She's hyper from the Albuterol. It's rough.
Tonight she had a breathing treatment before bed, another one at 10:30 and I have the alarm set for 2am and 6am to do it again.
CLD sucks.
In good news, Jax is mostly healthy!

No comments:

Post a Comment